Ruby Hearts Sapphire Dreams
by Acinarret
Summary: [DISCONTINUED] Brendan has to learn to adapt to life in his new home. However, his new environment brings new mysteries, and he begins to notice the presence of creatures forgotten even by myth. An old story from 2009.
1. Chapter 1: Fall From Fame

_Notice: This is purely fan-made, non-profit, and I in no way own Pokemon._  
_Warning: Later chapters may contain shounen-ai. (Don't like? Don't read!)_

_This was a story written back in 2009. Please treat it as such._

* * *

Multiple claps could be heard off to the side of the black pavement as the white haired teen crossed the finish line. Brendan was no doubt, the most popular boy at New Bark High School. Star of the track team and keeping fairly decent grades were only the beginning of his many desirable characteristics, for he was also considered one of the best looking students of his grade. His deep red eyes and gleaming white hair could catch anyone's attention. And his slender but athletic figure only increased the amount of glances he earned within a day.

Sweat dripping down his brow, Brendan looked up into the blazing sun feeling a strong sense of triumph, something he always felt after winning a match during track and field. Before he could truly take time to relish in his victory however, he was bombarded by a flood of people. Each wanting their own chance to congratulate him and give him a light clap on the back.

"Amazing!" one cheered.

"We beat Cherrygrove nothing flat!" cried another.

Finally catching his breath and thinking fairly strait again, Brendan managed to stumble his way out of the hysterical crowd and over to the side of the coarse where yet another teammate waited before presenting him with a bottle of water.

"Lost your breath out there, huh Snow White?" came the familiar voice of Jimmy as he handed Brendan the bottle.

Smirking, Brendan was used to his friend's unusual nicknames but never felt offended as Jimmy never meant any harm by his words. After all, the boy had been his best friends for years, and the two had been through almost everything together. Jimmy was an average boy at the age of fifteen, if not a little eccentric at times, with deep gold eyes and short dark blue hair that usually remained covered by one of his favorite hats whenever he was outside of school grounds.

"So, you got any plans for after school?" Jimmy asked casually, leaning back against the chain-link fence.

"Not really," Brendan replied, taking a rather long and greedy drink from his water. "Just the homework Professor Claire assigned for today."

"Oh that," Jimmy groaned closing his eyes in disgust. "Doesn't that woman have anything better to do than send us all to an early balding with her ridiculous assignments?"

Brendan couldn't help but chuckle at the idea. "Apparently not," he replied.

Jimmy pushed himself off the fence and slouched, digging his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Well, I guess I know what lies in my future tonight," he sighed.  
"Yeah, same here," Brendan agreed. "Chemistry has never really been my thing."

~~~~

Tired, sweaty, and a little irritable from the long walk home, Brendan's half dazed stooper was immediately brought to attention when he noticed cardboard box after cardboard box spread about the living room floor. "Wha—what's going on in here?" he stammered.

Almost as if on cue, his mother appeared from behind a large stack of the piled brown packages, her brown hair disrupted and falling haphazardly in front of her face while her outfit, one she only wore for cleaning around the house, sagged like a servants rag and was beginning to fall off one shoulder.

"Oh you're back." She breathed, an annoyed hint in her voice. "Hurry and just drop your bag anywhere. We have to get everything packed."

"Packed?" Brendan asked, setting his backpack down on an available space on the couch. "Packed for what?"

"For the _movers_," his mother whined as if she had explained this dozens of times before. "They'll be here in two more days to take us and everything here to our new home."

"Wait, but why?" he stuttered, feeling a pang of fear begin to run down his spine"

"Oh, that pathetic manager Price thought that my work wasn't good enough for him," she began. "So out of the blue he just comes up to me in the middle of my break, my well deserve break I might add, and lectures me forever on how my work is so 'unsuitable' by the company's standards. Well, whatever. If he doesn't appreciate my help than why should I bother giving it to him?"

Brendan knew that everything other than his mother getting fired was a lie. For as long as he could remember she had always done this same routine numerous times throughout the years, and he was surprised he wasn't completely used to it by now. His mother really wasn't suited for any type of job, and because of it, never managed to keep one for very long. This left Brendan with the agonizing task of trying to budget their remaining funds, and having to call his divorced father to beg and plead for just enough money to get by into the next week. Needless to say, because of this Brendan was on very bad terms with both of his parents.

"Mom," Brendan breathed out as calmly as he could, his emotions ready to burst out from inside of him. "That's the third job you've lost this year! What are we going to do about money!?

"That's why we're moving," she said in a matter-of-fact tone. "An old college friend of mine offered me a decent paying job over in the Hoenn region."

Brendan felt like his whole world had just come down on top of him. The Hoenn region. His father lived in the Hoenn region. Would he have to see his father? No. He didn't want to think about it. But wait. What about—

"What about my friends!?" he suddenly yelled, earning an unsuspecting jump from his mother as she cringed from his sudden outburst. "We're moving to a whole other country here, not just down the street! And what do you expect me to tell the team! I can't just abandon them in the middle of the season!"

"You'll just have to make new ones!" his mother yelled back. A dangerous anger glowing in her eyes.

"But—"

"Don't mess with me Brendan!" she screamed, throwing a glass at him and missing only by a fraction of an inch. "Just get out of my sight and go pack your things or I'll have the movers leave them all behind!"

Tears beginning to form in his eyes, Brendan turned as fast as his legs could carry him, grabbing his backpack and bolting up the stairs to his room and locking the door behind him. Slumping to the floor he wrapped his arms around his legs and rested his head upon them, tears now dripping onto his clothes in heavy drops. What was he going to tell his friends tomorrow? Standing up, he got to work with packaging his things.


	2. Chapter 2: Goodbyes

Notice: This is purely fan-made, non-profit, and I in no way own Pokemon.  
Warning: Later chapters may contain shounen-ai. (Don't like? Don't read!)

_This is an old story from 2009. Please treat it as such._

* * *

"Dude that's totally harsh."

"I know, but what can I do?"

"Going into hiding is always an option."

"Yeah right! I'm not that desperate!"

"Kidding! Kidding! But seriously man, are you going to be okay?"

Brendan didn't know what to think at the moment. He and Jimmy had taken their lunch periods to head out to their usual hangout, the track and field stands, to discuss what Brendan had discovered the previous night. The breeze was warm and calm but it didn't lift the heavy mood of the two teenage boys.

"I already told coach that I was leaving," Brendan mumbled, staring blankly down at his feet. "I just hope the other team members don't hold it against me."

"Of course they won't!" Jimmy responded in surprise. "Who could? None of this is under your control. It's not like you wanted to leave. And if anyone wants to say otherwise they'll have to go through me fist!"

A small smile crossed Brendan's face. "Thank you Jimmy. I probably wouldn't know what to do right now if you weren't here for me."

"Don't mention it," Jimmy said proudly, sitting up a little straighter to show it. "I'll even help you break the news to the others if you'd like."

Brendan nodded his head softly in agreement. "I'd like that."

-

"You're LEAVING!?" Marina shrieked, throwing her arms fiercely around Brendan's shoulders and knocking the wind out of him. Tears began forming in her eyes. "You can't leave! You can't! I won't let you!"

It was now the end of the school day and the two were gaining a fair amount of interesting looks from the too eager to leave crowd. Marina had also been a friend to Brendan for years. Like Jimmy, she was also known for her spontaneous and upbeat attitude. Her bright blue eyes and even brighter shoulder length hair, which she often tied into two ponytails, only helped to make her stand out wherever she went.

"Let him go Marina," Jimmy sighed, fitting his favorite black and yellow cap back into place now that the school hours were over. "Brendan's strong. He can take care of himself."

"But—"

"I'll be alright," Brendan lied, trying to hide his own sadness. "Just don't forget about me, okay?"

"No one could do that," Marina sobbed. "No one could forget you."

Jimmy nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, don't even start thinking that. We'll always be here for you, and if you ever need us we're always just a phone call away."

"Thanks you guys," Brendan replied. "I'll contact you as soon as I get to Hoenn."

Jimmy grinned and gave his friend a gentle pat on the back. "You'd better!" he teased. "Now go on, before your mom lets you have it for being late. We wouldn't want her to make you walk all the way the Hoenn."

Brendan sighed. "If only it was that easy."

-

By the time Brendan arrived home the moving truck was in the process of being packed and his mother was busy preaching orders left and right to the tiered men hauling out their belongings.

"Be careful with that!" she would shout. "Hurry up or I'm going to be up all night!" She didn't even notice that Brendan had come home.

"Hi, mom," Brendan said cautiously, not wanting to evoke any more of her anger from the previous night. He remembered all to clearly the shock he had felt when his mother had lost her temper and ended up throwing a drinking glass at him, only to miss by a fraction of an inch.

"Oh, you're back," his mother responded in an exasperated tone. "It's about time. I need you to help these movers finish everything quickly. I don't want to be kept up all night by their racket."

Brendan could only acknowledge her request, and he tried his best to bury the usual betrayal he felt from his mother deep down inside his heart. Just get it over with, he thought to himself. _Get it over with and you won't have to deal with it again. She's just being her usual self. You can handle it._ Picking up a heavy box he loaded it into truck. "Looks like I have a long night ahead of me," he mumbled. Brendan only wished that he could have the task finished before midnight.


	3. Chapter 3: The Trip

_Notice: This is purely fan-made, non-profit, and I in no way own Pokemon._  
_Warning: Later chapters may contain shounen-ai. (Don't like? Don't read!)_

_This is an old story from 2009. Please treat it as such._

* * *

A sudden jolt brought Brendan out of his sleep and he landed with a thud onto a hard metal floor. Opening his eyes all he could see was darkness. Only darkness. Not even a single sliver of light penetrated the place where he now lay, half conscious, with a dull pain shooting up the left side of his body. _Where am I_, Brendan thought to himself. It didn't take long for him to remember, though. As he could feel the ground vibrating beneath his feet and could hear invisible walls humming a few feet away, the memories of the events that had taken place these last few weeks flooded back into his mind.

**~~~*flashback*~~~**

After everything for the move had been packed and loaded into the back of the moving van, Brendan and his mother were off for a seven day ride to the oceans in Olivine City where they, the van, and all their cargo would be loaded onto a large ship that sailed to the Hoenn region. Well, not all their cargo exactly. Due to the fact that Brendan's mother lost her previous job (the whole reason they were moving to Hoenn in the first place) they only had enough money to rent one van. Meaning that most of their larger belongings, such as furniture, had to be left behind. The only piece brought being none other than the old living room couch. _Guess she needed something to sleep on_, Brendan thought grumpily to himself.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the only problem the solitary van posed. Also due to limitations in space, Brendan was forced to ride in the back of the vehicle for the entire trip. All alone and in complete darkness. Only being let out when the van stopped to get gas or when they arrived at some back-alley motel to sleep and maybe get something to eat. Could this be labeled as abuse? Brendan certainly thought so. Still, there was nothing that he could do about it. At least not now.

Even after they had set sail, his situation didn't really improve. He got to spend a little over a week without being in the van as they sailed over the calm blue sea, but once they reached shore, it was right back to routine. Back to that dark little 'room' where sight was impossible and rational thought nearly went with it. How was one supposed to keep their sanity in this situation?

"Why does she get to ride up front?" Brendan mumbled to himself, trying to keep his mind normal and functioning in any way possible. "Knowing her, she's probably been flirting with the driver this whole time."

Brendan shuddered and cleared the thought from his bored imagination. "Oh, well," he giggled, his mind sparking a hint of evil as he felt a piece of his sanity drop from existence. "At least I get the couch."

Flipping over onto his stomach from his position on the couch he buried his face into one of the cushions and inhaled deeply, causing him to choke and cough from the dust that shot its way into his lungs. Sitting back up onto his elbows he muttered a small curse to himself before relaxing once more so that he could pass the time with sleep. "I hate this damn thing…"

**~~~*End Flashback*~~~**

The pain in Brendan's side began to dissipate as his mind came back into focus. He had been lying on the couch packed away in the back of the van when something had caused him to go flying. A sudden 'click' and a cease of all sound told him what it was. The truck had stopped. They had arrived at their destination. Or at least Brendan hoped so. All time had either been merged or lost during his confinement in his 'prison transport'.

It wasn't long after that the back doors were opened and a blinding light illuminated everything around him, causing him to have to shield his eyes from the glow. "Time to get out kid," his mother's voice commanded from beyond the doors. "We're here."


	4. Chapter 4: Neighbors

_Notice: This is purely fan-made, non-profit, and I in no way own Pokemon._  
_Warning: Later chapters may contain shounen-ai. (Don't like? Don't read!)_

_This is an old story from 2009. Please treat it as such._

* * *

The pain in Brendan's side began to dissipate as his mind came back into focus. He had been lying on the couch packed away in the back of the moving van when something had caused him to go flying. A sudden click, and a cease of all sound told him what it was. The truck had stopped. They had arrived at their destination. Or at least Brendan hoped so. All time had either been merged or lost during his confinement in his 'prison transport'.

It wasn't long after that the back doors were opened and a blinding light illuminated everything around him, causing him to have to shield his eyes from the glow. "Time to get out kid," his mother's voice commanded from beyond the doors. "We're here."

Slowly, Brendan picked himself up off the floor and made his way to the exit. Just his luck though, as he went to jump out his legs, still asleep from the long ride, were unable to hold his weight and he ended up falling face first onto his driveway upon impact. Brilliant.

His mother made no move to help. She only stared down at him as if he was an idiot, and to be perfectly honest, at this moment he sure felt like one. "This place seems quaint and easy to live in," his mother finally spoke, changing the subject. "And everything should already be in order inside."

_Everything's already in order inside?_ Brendan wondered as he got up off the ground and dusted off his clothing. But we just arrived. _And I was in the van with all of our stuff the whole time. How could everything already be inside?_

Reading the confusion written across her son's face, his mother gestured the curious boy inside.

It was bigger than he had anticipated, with wooden floors and crisp white walls. And he could already see what his mother meant by 'everything should already be in order inside.' Though their more personal belongings still resided inside the van, the house was already completely furnished. The living area was already adorned with a table and chairs set upon a warm pink rug. A white storage shelf and brand new television were just a few feet away. Wandering into the kitchen he found that it was also completely in order with a fridge, stove, and even a fancy hutch the held various expensive plates and crystal glasses. _But why?_

Strolling back into the living area and finding his mother he immediately brought up the question. "Mom, why is everything already put together? Did someone live here before us and just leave everything behind?" As nice as it was, Brendan would feel rather guilty if everything here was just something that someone else couldn't afford and had to leave behind.

"As if," his mother made a disgusted face at the very notion that the furnishings belonged to someone else. "No, my new employer set this up for me. Isn't it great?"

Brendan felt a genuine smile cross his features for what felt like the first time since he left Johto. "It is," he replied honestly.

"Oh," his mother suddenly regained her usual frown. "There's something from your father here for you too."

Brendan instantly felt his heart plummet again. _Why now? _

"It's sitting in a brown box over on the table. You might as well go over and see what it is. Though I doubt it's anything as exciting as **this**." Her expression went back to its overjoyed state as she went to admire more their new house.

Walking slowly over to the table Brendan easily found the box she had mentioned. _I Might as well open it. But I wonder why dad even bothered? _

Inside the box was a single blue clock, round and utterly plain. _Dad never really was one for gifts_, Brendan thought. _But maybe things can start becoming more steady with us now._

Three quick raps on the door brought Brendan back into the real world. Who could that be, he wondered. Setting the clock carefully back into its box and leaving it on the table he quickly went to see just who could be coming to see them when they had not even been living in the house for more than a few minutes.

Reaching the door and fixing his hair a bit before opening it, he found a very peaceful looking middle aged woman waiting on the other side. In her hands she held a small bouquet of assorted flowers. "You must be the new neighbors," she said sweetly, a smile gently crossing her face.

"Erm, umm, yes," Brendan faltered a bit. A tad unaccustomed to any sort of friendly behavior after his long journey.

She simply smiled at him, knowing that he probably felt odd at her sudden appearance. "I'm Mrs. Sapphire," she said, reaching out her hand to shake Brendan's. "My husband Birch and my daughter May live right next door to you. Oh, these are for you as well, dear." She placed the bouquet of flowers in Brendan's hands.

"Thank you," Brendan replied awkwardly, feeling a little sheepish at receiving flowers from a women he just met. "My name's Brendan," he added. "Brendan Ruby. It's a pleasure meeting you."

"Likewise, dear. Well, I ought to be going now so take care, alright? Feel free to stop by any time and visit us. You're always welcome." She shook his hand one more time before she tuned and left, leaving him to ponder what just happened.

_Wait_, Brendan thought. _She never got to meet my mom. It was too late now though, and she had already disappeared. I guess I'll have to introduce them later._

Of course, right on cue, he mother appeared at the top of the steps. "Who was that Brendan?"

"Our next door neighbor, Mrs. Sapphire. She gave us these." He held out the bouquet for her to see.

"Oh, well, I have no need for such things. It was nice of her to stop by, but you can just get rid of that." She turned and headed back up the stairs, leaving Brendan alone again with a bouquet of flowers in his hands.

How rude, he thought. And after she went through all the trouble too when she doesn't even know us. Heading over to their already stocked cupboards, he swiftly took out a small, plain glass and filed it with cold water and added a bit of sugar, mixing the solution together before he placed the flowers in the glass.

"There," he said triumphantly as he admired his work. _If mom doesn't want them than they can just stay up in my room with me. They're too pretty to just throw out. _

Grabbing his blue clock off the table he heading up to his new room for the first time and found that it was fully furnished as well. Not to mention totally huge. Like the living room, his floor was also wood and also had a large warm pink rug resting about the middle of the floor. A single person bed was set up in the back left corner, and left plenty of space for Brendan to do with the room as he wished. As he walked in a little bit further. He found that his front wall was also adorned with expensive items._Who the heck paid for all this?_ Brendan wondered. In his room was a desk for study complete with a brand new computer, and a little more left of that sat another new television with a purple GameCube attached. _Why?_ He wondered.

Setting the flowers down carefully onto the study desk by the computer, he revisited the question over and over as he went back out to the van to finish collecting his things.


	5. Chapter 5: A Rainy School Day

_Notice: This is purely fan-made, non-profit, and I in no way own anything_  
_Warning: This contains shounen-ai (Don't like? Don't read!)_

_This is an old story from 2009. Please treat it as such. This is also possibly the last chapter I will ever post for this story. I started it far too many years ago, got sidetracked, and consequentially lost touch with it. _

* * *

A light rain streamed down upon Brendan's head. Not enough to hinder his walking, but still enough to add a slight dampness to his clothes and hair.

He was on his way to his new school for the first time, and the cool, constant rhythm of the morning drizzle helped to calm his nerves.

_It won't be too bad_, he thought to himself. _If I just act like I normally do everything will be fine._

After about another twenty minutes he finally reached the school's front gate. The building had two floors and was constructed almost entirely out of red brick. A cement sign sitting above the front entrance read "Newbark High School".

In summer perhaps, the school would look bold and regal, but now during the dreariest part of the year, the water that cascaded down the outer brick walls caused the place to look run down and gloomy.

_It won't be too bad_, Brendan repeated to himself.

Gathering his courage and focusing his will he took the final strides and entered.

"Order! Order, Please!"

"But professor, he – "

"Yes, yes I can see that. Now to your seats. Immediately!"

The class let out a groan in unison as each student returned slowly to their seats, excitedly passing whispers to one another and taking quick glances at the new student in the room.

Brendan felt mortified as he reflected on the past few minutes of class. The moment he walked into the room chaos insured. At first the students had just stared, but then sly smiles spread across each of their faces, then came giggles, and then someone from who-knows-where in the room shouted: "what's up with his hair!?" The rest of the class must have taken that is a sort of cue because just then everyone had stood up and began crowding him to get a better look.

"It's not just his hair," one boy pointed out. "It's his eyes too! They're red!"

"What, is he some sort of demon?" asked another.

This had not been what Brendan had anticipated at all. Sure, red eyes and white hair weren't exactly common, but back in Johto nobody made a big deal about it. Then again, almost everyone dyed their hair there. One of his friends Mariah sported turquoise blue hair all the time. Even colors like false red were so common that nobody made fun of them. But looking around the room then Brendan had noticed the problem. Everyone in this room, no exception, had either black or brown hair. Not even a bleached blond in sight. Was it really such a big deal, though?

The sound of a ruler striking down onto a table jolted everyone from their current priorities. Heads turned and scared eyes now rested solely upon the angered professor standing in the front of the classroom. One wouldn't think that she could be intimidating, judging by her almost school-like features and her hair which was tied back into two brown ponytails with a pink girly ribbon, but the look on her face and the response she got out of her students told that she meant business.

"I told you all that I wanted order in my classroom and I will have it," she barked. Students slowly began to saunter back to their desks, some mumbling disappointment, and others daring not to say anything at all. "Is that clear?"

"Yes Professor Roxanne," the class groaned out in unison.

_Impressive._

"…"

"I said are you familiar with the text Mr. Ruby, or for that matter are you even still with us?" another round of giggles erupted from the class as Brendan was snapped out of a daydream involving him and something other than class.

"Silence!" his teacher snapped and immediately the class was dead quiet once more. Roxanne gained a sly smile across her face, that I'm-gonna-get-you-for-this smile, and he directed her gaze on Brendan. "Mr. Ruby," she began. "Because you seem to dislike my class so much that you disrupt it every few minutes I think I'll assign you double homework for the evening."

"What!?" Brendan's jaw dropped in disbelief. "You can't honestly believe – "

"And because you are such a distraction I want you do dye your hair back to normal by the end of this week. I don't appreciate students going to such means to gain attention in my class."

"It's natural." Brendan growled. He couldn't believe the nerve of this lady! "And it's not 'white'. It's platinum blond."

"Oh, really," Roxanne smirked. "Then perhaps if you aren't going to correct this atrocity, than I need to do it myself. I can assure you things won't go well if you choose this option. I'm no stylist."

Brendan sighed in defeat. There was nothing he could do about it now.

Returning to his notes and taking out his textbook from his bag, the class began to focus once again on their studies and to the lecture. _About time._

Halfway through class though Brendan felt like someone was watching him. _Not surprising_, he thought to himself. _Everyone was staring at me just a moment ago._ But when the feeling persisted for another five minutes he turned his head to notice one of his classmates was indeed staring at him. _Great_.

Like everyone else in the classroom, the girl appeared to be about the same age as him, give or take a few months, with short brown hair that was mostly covered by a red bandanna (that Brendan was pretty sure was against the dress code) save for a few long strands that fell about each side of her face and sky blue eyes.

_What do you want?_ he thought bitterly to himself. _I've had enough problems for today, so just leave me alone._

As if the girl could understand what he had said in his mind, or just plain got scared by the glare that he had given her, she turned back to her work and left Brendan with a moment of piece that lasted for the rest of the class period.

With language arts finally being over with and the teacher having her face buried in her desk grading papers, Brendan took a moment for himself to stretch his arms up into the air in relief. None of the students had really bothered him after they had been dismissed, probably seeing him as 'old news' by now, and for that he was thankful. But just as he had packed his books and made it a few steps out of the room, a voice came calling after him. Turning, he immediately recognized the person as the girl staring him down before. _Oh, great. This can't be good._

"You're the new student, right? Brendan was it?" Her eyes shown at him happily and she made no move to make any snide remarks about his appearance like everyone else had.

_Duh, I'm the new student_, Brendan thought before returning a fake smile. "Yeah, My name's Brendan. It's a pleasure to meet you, um…"

"May," the girl chimed in. Her smile growing even wider as she seemed to radiate off even more energy than mere moments before. "I heard about what teacher said regarding your hair today."

_Who hasn't?_ "What about it?" Brendan could begin to feel his patience slipping from him. _What do you care?_

"Well… about that…um…" She glanced downward as she sheepishly scuffed one of her shoes on the floor, obviously nervous about what she was going to say. "I was wondering if you could come to my place after school."

"...What!?"


End file.
